Skill Challenge: Investigating Kalis Uprising
tf - Monday, September 08, 2014, 3:08 PM ---------------------------------------- Outside Kalis itself, is a large sensor array, not unlike the SETI system of Earth, except this is naturally far more advanced. Twelve different large square radio transmitters help Intel keep tabs on distant planets, as well as their eternal nemeses. Darkness reigns, as it is the middle of the night, which is when automated reports come in alerting Decepticon forces to a security breech. Kalis Outskirts(#12128Rnt) - Kalis The area around Kalis is both mountainous and swampy, the worst of two worlds. It definitely makes travel for the unwary treacherous, as the swamp almost seems to reach up to suck feet, wheels, and treads down into it, and jagged cliffs almost lunge out to impale the unwary. Contents: Tiny Robotic Pillbug (#11001) Snowblind(#11078) Blast Off(#1878) Kalis (#12132) Obvious exits: Up Out With a disdainful shrug, Blast Off transforms into a space shuttle. Snowblind folds inwards at the knees and torso and her arms extend into wings as she transforms into a high-tech aerial drone. Space Shuttle , as CO of Aerospace, keeps tabs on this planetary sensor array as part of his job duties. He's heard that something has malfunctioned, and has come to investigate, bringing a few others with him. He flies in towards the area, scanning for anything unusual or noteworthy. <> He comes in for a landing and will soon have his cargo bay door opened for the Insecticon to exit- as quickly as possible, he hopes. ...Provided there aren't any unexpected complications, that is. Juggernaut keeps slamming his fist on a console near the back, "THIS ENERGON GOODIE VENDING MACHINE ISN'T WORKING!!" the Insecticon shouts, hitting it a couple of more times. That's -probably- not a vending machine. Also, Blast Off -probably- isn't going to be amused. Plunking down in a seat, Juggernaut remembers a snack he stowed away before the flight. Grabbing it from sub-space, the bugbot probably grosses anyone nearby out shoveling the neon green grub into his mouth.. mandibles clicking all the while. "What do I look like, an idiot?" Juggernaut answers Blast Off. Nope, not at all. Robotic Pill-bug parts shift, condense, and fold away to reveal.. THE JUGGERNAUT!!! MQ-41 Sky Eye Drone is moving silently through the skies behind Blast Off, staying out of the range of what would be most snipers or marksmen. From her position high above, she can lay out a map of the terrain and commence deep scanning sweeps to pierce through all but the deepest ground or most heavily shielded structures. Her job as a reconnaisance unit begins. Snowblind is the first to start analysis of the situation. She picks up several Cybertronians in the sensor array field, several of them at the large sensors themselves. Doing recon and relaying the intel, the Decepticon team gets visuals of the intruders. A dozen figures altogether, scampering around. The next item of note is that one of the sensors promptly gets recalibrated and is sending out a different signal, the purpose, unknown. The figures reveal themselves as a spindly black Femme holding a staff is caught on camera. Dal Matia. Which means that these figures are Unicron Cultists... You drop Dal_Matia. Snowblind moves into position above the satellite, and transmits what her long-range cameras are picking up on an uplink to Blast Off and Juggernaut. The movements of the targets below appear, if her transmissions are accepted, as a small HUD window in either Decepticon's field of vision. << Uplink established. Awaiting further orders sir. I am attempting to capture and record the errant transmission. >> Combat: MQ-41 Sky Eye Drone compares her Technical to 80: Failure :( While Snowblind can capture the transmissions without any difficulty, after all it's completely unsecured...and therefore a security breach that Intel will have a fit over, the actual transmission seems so garbled that it doesn't provide much in the way of clues as to the WHY of it. Space Shuttle waits for Juggernaut to get out, then transforms into root mode and lands on a nearby hilltop to watch from some nearby cover. Snowblind attempts to pick up just what they are transmitting... but no luck. He radios to Juggernaut, <> Meanwhile, the Combaticon sorts through the data Snowblind has sent, searching for anything intelligible. He's had some of experience as a former mercenary programming and hacking into some basic security codes of various alien races and cultures... so perhaps he can find something, after all. Combat: Space Shuttle compares his Technical to 75: Failure :( Blast Off shifts into his battle-ready robot mode. Even amid the order, Juggernaut continues to fill his face with ener-slop for another moment or two. Wiping a trail of neon green slime from his face, the gargantuan Insecticon rises and approaches the cargo-bay door. "I heard ya, quit yer belly achin'." he grumbles, pressing the release on the door. *FWWWWWWWWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOSHHHHHHHHHHHH* The air rollicks around until stabilizing, Juggernaut wastes no time in jumping out of the craft. Truth be told, he'd rather be punching faces right now. Even ugly ones. Instead, he's acting as their spybot. Sometimes being a Decepticon is such a drag. Transforming into his -super- tiny bug mode, Juggernaut hits the ground with the most delicate and adorable *PLINK* sound. Making his way cautiously and carefully, the miniscule size helps, Juggernaut attempts to locate targets: The strange devices, intruders, and more specifically.. the best vector for his compatriots to slip in undetected. What trickery is this? Is that really a Cute Tiny Robotic Pillbug?? Combat: Tiny Robotic Pillbug sets his defense level to Fearless. Combat: Tiny Robotic Pillbug compares his Accuracy to 70: Failure :( REROLL Combat: Tiny Robotic Pillbug compares his Accuracy to 70: Success! It's total garbage transmissions. As Snowblind discovered, Blast Off too finds true that the transmissions aren't secured, and they just don't make any sense! Dal Matia, her greenish neon glow in the dark, calls out to her team, "Move then. Hurry and send the trooth. Dark times, they come soon." One of the cultists notes aloud, a slur to his words, "Priesstess, the Deceptorss they come sssoon." Her head visibly is seen nodding, "Den we bring our gift to dem. Deaf." The cultists roar, completely oblivious to the concept of a covert mission, "DEATH!!!!" Blast Off is starting to get a little frustrated... the data doesn't make any sense to him, either. With an annoyed huff, he places that aside and takes note that Juggernaut, at least, has successfully gotten in close. <> So the shuttleformer attempts to sneak in, using his drab coloration and impressive agility not to make any excess noise. He doesn't have to get super-close, but perhaps the spot Juggernaut found will be close enough to either listen in... or start sniping. <> Combat: Blast Off compares his Agility to 80: Success! << As you command, >> Snowblind coolly responds. She attempts to decrypt the gibberish once more, placing herself in a position closer to the hacked array, and opening up the full range of her detection devices. The edges of her wings start turning gunmetal gray as she redirects power to her processor. Combat: MQ-41 Sky Eye Drone compares her Intelligence to 100: Failure :( REROLL Combat: MQ-41 Sky Eye Drone compares her Intelligence to 100: Failure :( There comes a point in every Decepticon's existence, well most of them anyways, when following orders just isn't what it's made out to be. Every once in awhile, you've got to buck the trend. As these cultists move toward their plan at an exceedingly fast rate, team Con is crawling along like a couple of Seacons out of water. And if there's anything Juggernaut is low on, other than intelligence.. it's patience. Starting at an adorable cute jog, he quickly transforms into his robot mode and begins a dead run at the intruders. "Do I even have to say it?" he laughs, attempting to swing his gargantuan shielded arms into their ranks. "You wished for death?" Juggernaut laughs, a bot possessed. "BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU WISH FOR!!" Robotic Pill-bug parts shift, condense, and fold away to reveal.. THE JUGGERNAUT!!! Combat: Juggernaut compares his Strength to 80: Success! <'Decepticon'> The Juggernaut says, "You think types figure out what's going on." <'Decepticon'> Blast Off huuuufffffs <'Decepticon'> The Juggernaut says, "Me? I'm tearing them a new one!" <'Decepticon'> Blast Off says, "I SEE that, and this completely ruins any element of surprise!" <'Decepticon'> The Juggernaut says, "Your plan sucked." <'Decepticon'> The Juggernaut says, "SURPRISE!" <'Decepticon'> Blast Off huffffs again <'Decepticon'> Snowblind says, "Surprise was lost the moment we were spotted. It is best to move on quickly to their disposal." <'Decepticon'> Blast Off says, "Yes... I shall start picking them off shortly." Juggernaut lives up to his name, well technically that isn't so, as Juggernaut means to NOT Jugger, whatever that means. Snowblind gets an unexpected revelation! She desperately tries to compute what is going on, tries to understand the meaning of the foul words, and for a moment has flashes of memories not her own. She sees pain, malice, death, Dal Matia herself, and something to do with timing. Unbeknownst to herself, she starts laughing, and laughing in that Thunderwing-is-clearly-unhinged way. When Juggernaut hits the fan, at least Blast Off is in a proper position for his sniping! Dal Matia and the cultists don't even seem surprised by the attack, and they move to greet it. "DEATH!" the gumbies roar, and Juggernaut delivers. They just don't care. The wicked sorceress waves her staff in the air, a sickly green energy wraps up and around Juggernaut, attempting to corrupt his systems. Hope you've had your dark energon vaccine, Juggernaut! ROLL: Snowblind rolled a 8 ROLL: Snowblind rolled a 51 Blast Off facepalms as Juggernaut completely throws all his careful sneaking in to the winds and just starts punching things. ....Figures. Gah, and this is why he complains about having to deal with ham-fisted brutes who know nothing of more delicate and fine-tuned operations. *siiigh* He shakes his head, then looks over as Snowblind begins acting a little... strangely? <> In the meantime, he crouches into position, ionic blaster in hand and lifted up towards Dal Matia. He doesn't like that staff of hers... what's that thing, anyway? As she uses it to seemingly attack Juggernaut, he fires a shot- right at the staff. Combat: Blast Off compares his Accuracy to 90: Success! Snowblind processor is overwhelmed by the effort needed to try to decypher the undecypherable and the sudden crossing over into Otherself. She'll be fascinated with trying to recreate this experience for weeks afterwards. Temporary Insanity takes hold and with it is unspeakable fear. < AM MORE THAN ONE BODY I AM MORE THAN ONE BODY 01001001 00100000 01100001 01101101 00100000 01101101 01101111 01110010 01100101 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100001 01101110 00100000 01101111 01101110 01100101 00100000 01100010 01101111 01100100 01111001 !!! >> Ice crystals start swirling around her as she locks herself into a hovering flight and blasts a blizzard down onto the cultists to blind them for her escape. Combat: MQ-41 Sky Eye Drone compares her Accuracy to 80: Success! Doing his best to inflict as much damage, if not more, than he's taking.. Juggernaut can't help but grin wide and let out a holler "BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO-YA-KA!!" It isn't until the nasty lady with the magic staff step into play, does the Insecticon give any ground whatsoever. As the green energy wraps around, his internal systems start pinging alerts of corruption attempt in progress. His metallic teeth grind, tiny pieces flaking off them.. mandibles chatter uncontrolably, his mass enveloped by the green stuff. Fighting through the attack, the energy, and her other troops.. Juggernaut transforms and falls forward into a compact ball, aiming to bowl them over with momentum. The only question being, can he hold his own.. stand his ground to make that big push? Shifting, contorting, and expanding; parts allign into Juggernaut's.. Gigantic Robotic Pillbug mode!! Combat: Gargantuan Robotic Pillbug compares his Endurance to 75: Failure :( The Decepticons commence their assault. Snowblind, even in the esctatic throes of madness, summons aetheric ice from nothingness and sending it forward in a wide arc, in an attempt to freeze and bewilder the disciples of death. Blast Off gets a clear shot at Dal Matia, and suspecting the leadertype as being sneaky, makes an educated guess by assaulting her weapon of power. He raises his ionic blaster. The camera zooms in as his digit pulls the trigger. The weapon cycles, and a purple blast of energy fires out in slow motion. The camera zooms over to the 'sorceress'. Her optics shift, and she starts to turn, meeting the bolt head on. Her hand raises, a strange sigil appears before her that catches the blast, though it knocks her backwards. "Feelth, Decepticon cow-ards!" Juggernaut rolls up into a ball, doing his signature The Decepticons commence their assault. Snowblind, even in the esctatic throes of madness, summons aetheric ice from nothingness and sending it forward in a wide arc, in an attempt to freeze and bewilder the disciples of death. Blast Off gets a clear shot at Dal Matia, and suspecting the leadertype as being sneaky, makes an educated guess by assaulting her weapon of power. He raises his ionic blaster. The camera zooms in as his digit pulls the trigger. The weapon cycles, and a purple blast of energy fires out in slow motion. The camera zooms over to the 'sorceress'. Her optics shift, and she starts to turn, meeting the bolt head on. Her hand raises, a strange sigil appears before her that catches the blast, though it knocks her backwards. "Feelth, Decepticon cow-ards!" Juggernaut rolls up into a ball, doing his signature move, and bowls into several cultists. But then the unthinkable happens, She slams her staff to the ground, the ground seeming to splinter open in sickly green lines of energy...and the dead start to move and reform. They counterattack Juggernaut, weasling into the sides of his rolling form, dealing an unexpected amount of damage to his weaker points. Blast Off proceeds to fly in. He doesn't like getting close, but he wants this taken care of... and perhaps he doesn't have to take HER out... just make sure she doesn't have her weapon. The shuttleformer darts in, and using his agility again, grabs for the staff- and then darts away if he can. <> Combat: Blast Off compares his Agility to 90: Success! Snowblind is trying to get a grip on herself, and with great effort, she begins to shake it off like a bad dream cycle. << ... s... sir...? >> She has to push energon back out into her wings, removing the color of death, as she does a fast aileron roll to finish rattling the madness away with motion and speed. Though she will pay for it later, she disobeys a direct order. If she couldn't translate it with all her processor power trying a second time is, well, an act of insanity. And she's had enough of that today. Instead, she attempts to calculate the trajectory of the signal, to see where these cultists are trying to send their message. Combat: MQ-41 Sky Eye Drone sets her defense level to Fearless. There are no unread postings on the Global Bulletin Board. No matter his momentum or endurance, the main intruder has apparently seen fit to keep Juggernaut from reaching her. So-much-so, the dead reconfigure themselves and hold him tight.. the Insecticon held in place, his most vulnerable spots being exploited while he's motionless. "GRAAAAAAAAAAHHH!!" he groans, the cultists finding the soft parts between his massive armored plates.. no doubt filling him full of sharp instruments of any variety. He's felt pain before, that is nothing new to him. It sears across his systems, warning klaxxons sounding off of external breaches. Forged in fire, this Insecticon is quite used to the dull ache as it sporadically spikes in threshold.. like a wave of new pain, washing ashore. What he's not quite used to yet, is defeat. Summoning whatever he has left in reserves, the behemoth of a bugbot lunges forward.. despite the overwhelming weight holding him down, keeping him back. "Don't.. you know who I.. am?" he intones softly, grunting out each word as if itself were one of Hercules' twelve labors. Every ounce of energy is expended in one final push, an outstretched hand quivering in anticipation.. to be wrapped around Dal Matia's throat. "I'M.. THE.. JUGGERNAUT.. B*TCH!!" Combat: MQ-41 Sky Eye Drone compares her Accuracy to 90: Failure :( Combat: Gargantuan Robotic Pillbug compares his Strength to 90: Success! Juggernaut descends onto Dal Matia, just about as unstoppable as he claims, despite the damage taken. A siren blares in the distance. Mist floods into the area, before him, and when it departs. They are gone. Their objectives a mystery. Intel is definitely going to be pouring over this in the future...